title: Stem-cell therapy for erectile dysfunction.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Stem cells (SCs) have been investigated for the treatment of erectile dysfunction (ED).
  
  
  METHODS
  This review covers key disease targets and all 33 preclinical studies, including their use of SC types, animal models, transplantation routes, and outcome assessment methods.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In the past one and half years there have been more stem-cell-for-erectile-dysfunction studies than the prior 8 years combined. These new studies tend to use combinatory treatment approaches by modifying or supplementing SCs with angiogenic or neurotrophic genes or proteins. However, when considering all risks and benefits, these combinatory approaches do not seem more advantageous than single-SC approaches. Another trend is the choice of transplantation routes other than the standard intracavernous (IC) injection. However, with the exception of intravenous injection, these new transplantation approaches are more cumbersome than IC injection and yet offer no evidence of producing better outcomes. In contrast to these variations, a consensus among these studies is the suggestion that paracrine action, as opposed to cellular differentiation, is the principal therapeutic mechanism. In conclusion, IC injection of a single SC type should be the choice protocol for initial clinical trials, and this is clearly the case with two clinical trials that are currently recruiting patients.
authors.affiliation: University of California, School of Medicine, Department of Urology, Knuppe Molecular Urology Laboratory , San Francisco, CA 94143-0738 , USA +1 415 476 3800 ; +1 415 476 3803 ; clin@urology.ucsf.edu.
authors.forename: Ching-Shwun
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Zhongcheng
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Xin
authors.forename: Jican
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dai
authors.forename: Yun-Ching
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Tom F
authors.initials: TF
authors.lastname: Lue
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D048909:Diabetes Complications / Q000601:surgery; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D007172:Erectile Dysfunction / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery*; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D006801:Humans; D007275:Injections, Intravenous; D008297:Male; D032389:Myocytes, Smooth Muscle / Q000502:physiology; D009928:Organ Specificity; D019899:Paracrine Communication; D010411:Penile Induration / Q000150:complications; D010879:Piperazines / Q000627:therapeutic use; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery; D015995:Prevalence; D011468:Prostatectomy; D011687:Purines / Q000627:therapeutic use; D011878:Radiotherapy / Q000009:adverse effects; D051381:Rats; D000068677:Sildenafil Citrate; D033581:Stem Cell Transplantation; D013450:Sulfones / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D010879:Piperazines; D011687:Purines; D013450:Sulfones; D000068677:Sildenafil Citrate